What would you consider to be agricultural technology?

What are the most important factors to consider when exploring the use of technology, and the internet, in delivery of psychological therapy?

• The technology could be partially assisting the therapeutic process, or fully delivering therapy.

• Answer:

  Privacy The confidentiality of the session should be on par with in-person psychotherapy. There are ways to ensure the privacy, like using only encrypted connections and making sure that both the therapist and patient are in private places, just as they would be within the confines of an office. There are several services popping up that offer ways to do Internet-base therapy over secure connections. Regulations Across Borders If you have a license for a particular state but are going to deliver services to someone in another state, it's important to look into both your state's and your patient's state's policies on scope of practice and tele- or cybertherapy. Good Clinical Practice The quality of the session should not be negatively impacted because it is held with the use of technology. It's good to recognize that connections can become weak and the session may time out or have interference. Depending on the patient, you may want to make it clear how you will handle situations like that. It's also important to realize that looking at the patient's face on the screen often means that your gaze is diverted away from the camera and, therefore, from the patient's perspective you aren't making eye contact. There are other nuances of video chats that need to be tested case by case for their potential to impact on the therapeutic connection. Safety When dealing with more severe cases, the fact that the therapist will not be near the patient to intervene in a serious situation arising in therapy needs to be considered and proper precautions taken based on clinician judgement.